A private water main at the Crunch Fitness on Broadway broke around 8 a.m. Thursday morning, causing water to flood the street near the corner of Providence Road and Broadway.
Columbia Utilities was able to shut off the pipe from the city’s water system and responding technicians from Columbia Utilities cleaned up some debris from the water infrastructure.
Crunch Fitness, Raising Cane’s and Schnucks were among the businesses that were cut off from water due to the break. When the valve originally broke, water quickly covered the south-bound lanes of Providence Road between Broadway and Locust Street.
Water was roughly knee deep when the valve originally broke, according to Cody Allen, a water distribution technician for Columbia Utilities. Allen was the first city employee on the scene and noted that people exiting Crunch Fitness were having trouble standing and getting into their cars due to the high water.
Allen noted that residents should keep valve and water line boxes clear of trash, debris and rocks to make it easier for technicians to respond to these types of breaks quickly.
Allen said that in order to fix the break, repair teams will likely need to do work under the parking lot.
